Page 70 of Collateral Damage
Tears spring to her eyes, and that just pissed me off. This is her doing, not mine. Never in a million years would I push her away like she’s done to me.
“That girl had to make an impossible choice, and so she did.” With that, she turns and walks away.
I do the same, all the while thinking that Sybil chose her family. The thing she doesn’t understand, the reason I’m so hurt, is I truly thought Sybil considered me to be part of her family, too.
Thirty-One
Sybil
Present - Age 27
“I have good news,” I tell Lance Vale at our next Friday morning meeting.
Sitting in my dad’s old office hurts, but I try not to think about the time I spent here over the years and the many meaningful conversations that happened when I started working for him.
At least Vale has changed the furniture and switched the artwork. A photo of a much younger him while with his wife on a vacation sits on his large oak desk.
“I take it filming went well this week?”
“More than well.” I smile from ear to ear. King Media’s primetime tv network has already slottedTop of the Worldin for the fall. I have a feeling it’s going to be a massive hit, especially since they’ve agreed to run with Perry’s idea of having the episodes air alongside live social media reactions.
I can already imagine the funny, unhinged things people are going to say.
“I couldn’t be present for all of filming,” I say, “but I pop in as often as I can. Perry sends out nightly emails to keep everyone up to speed.”
He’s also been pretty good at the group text between him, me, and Cooper. We all want this to work—are all gunning for the same juicy footage that’s going to make our show a big hit.
“Tell me more about that,” Vale prods. “What was the best thing you filmed this week?”
My cheeks flush, but I instantly think of the scene that’s going to have women at home screaming at their television sets.
“Well, the film crews are following the stars around their daily lives, but we also have stationary cameras filming twenty-four-seven. One of those picked up a steamy kiss in a hot tub.” It was between Gloria and Benton, to nobody’s surprise.
He raises a bushy eyebrow. “There’s a hot tub at Cooper King’s penthouse, is there?”
I shrug. “It’s on the rooftop, yes.”
Cooper and I were in the screening room when the kiss happened. He’d given me a charged look, the kind that made my panties melt, but he quickly ruined the moment by asking if I was jealous my booty-call had moved on.
“I’ve been with Laurence for most of my career, so I can’t say I know a whole lot about reality tv,” Vale says. “The few holdings we with had with King weren’t in the entertainment media space. I’ll admit, I don’t watch trashy tv at home.”
I can’t imagine he would.
“That’s fair, but you know how they say sex sells? Showmances are a big deal.”
“Showmance?”
I wave my hand. “Trust me, this will help the show tremendously. People are going to lose their minds.”
“Hmm.” Vale leans in his chair, the age-lines in his face more prominent as he considers. “I can’t help but wonder if Laurencehas gotten into something untoward here. Is there a chance this will reflect poorly on us?”
My stomach sinks. “Not at all. There’s going to be a lot of variety on the show besides romance. The point is to make money, and it’s going to make us a ton when advertisers are lining up to work with Top of the World.”
He seems skeptical. “I hope you’re right. As I recall, Top of the World cost us over a hundred million.”
I swallow hard. King and Laurence each invested three hundred million—Laurence in pure capital, and King in a mix of money and resources. It’s one of the highest investmentseverin this space.
“I believe in Perry and Top of the World,” I assure him. “As far as company reputation, you really don’t have to worry. Nobody thinks of Laurence when they think of media—they think of King. This will be no different. If scandal does break up, it’s King’s liability, not ours.”
